Article on viruses

http://www.howstuffworks.com/virus.htmthe article I read was about computer viruses. I didn’t know much about them apart from the fact that they are a threat to your computer and extremely annoying! I found the article through google which lead me to a website about how stuff works. It was quite a long article and went through viruses in a great amount of detail. There were 7 sections to the article. They went through what a virus is, how they are made, how they reproduce, the damage that can be done, virus evolution, worms, history of viruses and how to prevent them. There were a few interesting facts in the article like in January 2004, approximately a quarter of a million computers were affected by the “Mydoom worm” in a few hours and I never knew that the reason they are called viruses is because they contain the same traits as a biological virus. They pass from computer to computer like a biological virus passes from person to person. The site also goes through why one would start a virus. It says that there are about 3 reasons. The first is the same reason that drives vandals, a thrilling feeling that comes with unnecessary destruction. Second is the thrill of watching something blow up. The third is bragging rights. The article has an interesting video that explains Trojan viruses. Viruses were first spotted in the late eighties. Viruses are constantly getting more and more advanced which is why anti viral software has to be updated every few months. I found the article very useful because not only does it describe how they are formed, it also has handy tips and links to useful sites to help you to keep your pc protected.